This is one of the Reserve TOMC teas from April. I drank from these leaves a few weeks ago, along with the other teas in this collection, but didn’t really get around to writing anything.
I enjoy this variety of tea, & have several in my collection from various sources, from the smokey brown sugar variety to TeaVivre’s highly fragrant version that smells like roses to me.
To me, Keemun teas have a nice rich middle flavor, but not so much of a bass or top note, which is probably why they get blended with other teas, such as Assam (very bassy). Anyway, I enjoy them.
So…I’ve been trying to decide what makes this one so special that it deserves a place in the ‘reserve’ club. It is very nice, but I’m still not sure. I’m lousy at comparing teas, just like I’m not an expert in visual arts, but if I see a painting that I love, I know I love it. If I taste a tea I love, same thing.
This tea appears as small black strands with red tinges.
The dry aroma is rich, earthy, sweet, with a hint of chocolate
The moist smell (heated in hot empty Gaiwan) = brown sugar & light smoke
Wet it smells of all those things, plus caramel apples & cream.
My formula: 4G + 4oz (quick rinse) X 3 sec
I wish I could say that I’ve been taking notes on every steeping, but I didn’t. I also didn’t write those things down last time. I don’t always know how to describe things, but I can say it tastes like Keemun! The smokiness is very refined, not an in your face kind of smoke. It’s a nice, earthy, caramelized brown sugar & apple. There’s also a light floral quality, & a sweet incense quality. And there’s chocolate. Of course, these are all subtle, & I have just enough of this to try it one more time. I plan on making the last cup in an regular cup with a longer steep time. Basically, I’ll brew it the way I brew my other Keemuns, to see how it comes out!
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“To me, Keemun teas have a nice rich middle flavor, but not so much of a bass or top note, which is probably why they get blended with other teas, such as Assam (very bassy).”
Wow, this was such a clear and intriguing description, with the musical comparisons!
Thanks! That’s how I tend to experience things, LOL, in reference to music. The funny thing is I often tend to experience music in reference to aromas, along with other perceptions. I tried to explain these perceptions once to my piano teacher when I was young, assuming she saw the same geometrics I saw while working on Bach, & she just looked at me like I was insane & told me those things Didn’t exist. Much later in life I found out about synesthesia, & that I’m not the only crazy person in the world! :D
Is it that you sense music in aromas, or that you sense aromas in music? Or both? Either way, that’s amazing, especially since you have other associative perceptions too.
I once read about prominent composers who wrote music in color, and since then the concept has always been intriguing, if a bit mythical. It’s much more real and striking now, hearing it from you instead of a documentary, haha! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for this note terri, I would describe it as a «sensorial free style tasting» :-)
I really dig what you wrote and I liked the analogy about visual art. I «feel» more than I taste, see or ear most of the time. Some teas I like just cause the way they make me feel. I’ve noticed that most people with musical background have different ways of perception, it’s very interesting.
Rie: When I’m playing, the vibrations of the harp especially create waves of sensations that I can literally breath in. It’s not necessarily floral or sweet, but like it’s own thing…how do you describe the aroma of happiness? or the taste of bliss? I know it sounds vague, because I guess it is, LOL. I also experience different things with different styles of music, different instruments, etc. Colors, geometrics, emotions, all kinds of things that are hard to describe & meaningful only to me. I don’t necessarily experience actual aromas as music, but aromas & flavors have alot of the same attributes as music/sound: High, low, sweet, dense, clear, pungent, complex…
TeaFairy: I love that! Sensorial free style tasting!! I think right brainers in general tend to have crossed wires where our perceptions are concerned. Then again, since everything that exists is really just vibrations anyway, it’s all interconnected anyway!
I see! Well, at least as close as I can know as someone who’s definitely not synesthetic in this way, haha! It must be quite a world through your senses. I hope you keep writing notes like this that share some of that with us. ‘u’- ♪
“To me, Keemun teas have a nice rich middle flavor, but not so much of a bass or top note, which is probably why they get blended with other teas, such as Assam (very bassy).”
Wow, this was such a clear and intriguing description, with the musical comparisons!
Thanks! That’s how I tend to experience things, LOL, in reference to music. The funny thing is I often tend to experience music in reference to aromas, along with other perceptions. I tried to explain these perceptions once to my piano teacher when I was young, assuming she saw the same geometrics I saw while working on Bach, & she just looked at me like I was insane & told me those things Didn’t exist. Much later in life I found out about synesthesia, & that I’m not the only crazy person in the world! :D
Is it that you sense music in aromas, or that you sense aromas in music? Or both? Either way, that’s amazing, especially since you have other associative perceptions too.
I once read about prominent composers who wrote music in color, and since then the concept has always been intriguing, if a bit mythical. It’s much more real and striking now, hearing it from you instead of a documentary, haha! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for this note terri, I would describe it as a «sensorial free style tasting» :-)
I really dig what you wrote and I liked the analogy about visual art. I «feel» more than I taste, see or ear most of the time. Some teas I like just cause the way they make me feel. I’ve noticed that most people with musical background have different ways of perception, it’s very interesting.
Rie: When I’m playing, the vibrations of the harp especially create waves of sensations that I can literally breath in. It’s not necessarily floral or sweet, but like it’s own thing…how do you describe the aroma of happiness? or the taste of bliss? I know it sounds vague, because I guess it is, LOL. I also experience different things with different styles of music, different instruments, etc. Colors, geometrics, emotions, all kinds of things that are hard to describe & meaningful only to me. I don’t necessarily experience actual aromas as music, but aromas & flavors have alot of the same attributes as music/sound: High, low, sweet, dense, clear, pungent, complex…
TeaFairy: I love that! Sensorial free style tasting!! I think right brainers in general tend to have crossed wires where our perceptions are concerned. Then again, since everything that exists is really just vibrations anyway, it’s all interconnected anyway!
I see! Well, at least as close as I can know as someone who’s definitely not synesthetic in this way, haha! It must be quite a world through your senses. I hope you keep writing notes like this that share some of that with us. ‘u’- ♪